Guardian
by An anonymous bookaholic
Summary: The legacy of a dead murderer, passed down to an innocent kit. Her mother's first thought was to kill her, potential friends loathe her, and the Clan despises her, merely because she has the pelt of a cat she is not. Despite this, Echokit begins to gain their trust, but when the murders begin again, that shatters. Through the whole time, she only has one constant. But who are they?
1. Prologue

Guardian

Prologue

A harsh leaf-fall gust battered the tightly woven nursery, amplifying the agonised wails from within.

"Get Olivenose!"

A heavily-pregnant white and ginger queen eased her way out of the den, narrowing her eyes against the lashing rain, as she hurried to the other side of the clearing. She returned moments later with a scruffy brown she-cat carrying a bundle if herbs.

Inside, a pale gold queen lay sprawled out on the reeds, with rippling motions running down her flank. A young grey tom slipped through the entrance, grasping a stick in his jaws.

"The kitting's started!" Gasped the golden queen.

"I can see that," grumbled Olivenose. "Skypaw, put the stick in Blossombreeze's mouth, and fetch me some soaked moss." The young tom did as he was told, then padded out to fetch the moss with a cautious glance over his shoulder.

"Blossombreeze, when I say so, push." The other she-cat grunted in acknowledgement, as another contraction coursed through her. "Ok, push, now!"

Blossombreeze hissed with effort, biting down on the stick, and a small shape slithered onto the ground. Skypaw re-entered the nursery and lowered the moss next to Blossombreeze, just as the other queen bent forwards, and began to lick the little kit fiercely, despite it's squirming.

"It's a tom," she announced, squinting in the early dawn light at the dark kit. The queen, Pearlshine, purred, and placed him carefully next to his mother. At the other end of the nursery, two other queens looked on, their kits watching curiously.

Blossombreeze gasped as a strong ripple wracked her body, and another kit flopped onto the nest, to be greeted by Skypaw's rasping tongue. "A she-cat," he declared, and put her next to her brother, who was already suckling.

"How many more?" Groaned Blossombreeze.

"Just one more, I think," soothed Olivenose, stroking the queen's belly with her tail.

The golden she-cat screeched, and shattered the stick, as a third lump slide into the world. He was also a tom, and was placed along side his litter mates. Sounds of Clan life were gathering outside, most likely an early hunting patrol.

A smaller ripple flowed down the queen's flank. "Shouldn't they stop now?" She murmured.

"There's probably one more to come," Olivenose meowed. Blossombreeze shuddered once more, and a much smaller kit plopped out. The medicine cat looked at it worriedly, and she began licking it furiously, but relaxed when it took in a deep breath.

"That's two toms and two she-cats," she grunted, watching Blossombreeze's eyes widen in horror at the latest kit. She was smaller in comparison to the others, and she also had a starkly different coat, which seemed to be silver with black spots. _Identical to her brother's,_ thought Olivenose. She hesitated, then said, "You will need some borage, to help with your milk. Four kits is a lot for one cat," and briskly gave her a few leaves. She then turned to Skypaw, who had been watching the scene unfold. "Go and tell Sunfur, when he gets back from the dawn patrol, he has four healthy kits, and that he may visit them." He nodded and padded out. She turned to follow him, casting one last glance over her shoulder and shuddering at sight of the small silver kit.

* * *

A while later, a large, russet tom nosed his way through the den entrance, and purred as he saw his mate and new born kits. The purring hitched when he spotted the silver kit, but a small smile passed over his face.

"Do they have names yet?" He asked, his gaze not leaving the smallest kitten.

"No, I was waiting for you," she replied, gazing fondly at each of the kits, but she too stiffened at the sight of the fourth. "Do you have any ideas?" Blossombreeze murmured.

The kits' fur had now dried out, and their markings were much clearer. The two toms were russet like their father, the larger one with a white chest and tail-tip, and the other with white paws and black stripes running down his back.

"How about Foxkit for the larger tom?" Sunfur meowed. Blossombreeze nodded.

"And Pinekit for the other tom?"

Sunfur purred. "But what about the she-cats?"

Both she-cats had a slender build, similar to their mother. One had short, light golden fur, with a pale chest and an unusual tinged pink tail-tip. The smaller kit was completely different, and her coat bore no resemblance to either of her parents. She was tiny compared to her siblings, with silver fur and black spots that faded down her legs, and a small, pink nose.

"Rosekit, for the golden kit," Blossombreeze mewed lovingly. "She's certainly as pretty as one, and those claws look as sharp as thorns! She's already a perfect warrior!"

"..And how about Echokit for the silver kit?" Sunfur suggested quietly. Blossombreeze paused, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath.

"Very fitting," she whispered. Then she continued, "She could almost have been his reflection, when he was that age. Except for his white paw."

"I'm sure she won't turn out like him," Sunfur comforted. Blossombreeze turned to him, her eyes suddenly wide with worry.

"But what if she does? He was so good at hiding his ambitions, how could I know if she's the same? We were so close when we were younger.." she broke off with a whimper. Sunfur lay down next to his mate to comfort her.

"Frostfoot is dead. He will never hurt anyone you love again. I've made sure of that." Blossombreeze's eyes darted nervously around the warm den, despite her mate's efforts to calm her down, and they came to a stop at Echokit.

"But _she_ might; we-we've got to get rid of her – before the Clan finds out. Oh, but Olivenose and Pearlshine have already seen her.. and so has Skypaw! Maybe if I just don't feed her, she'll die quickly.. she's so small anyway-"

"Blossombreeze!" Sunfur stared at his mate in horror. "Are you crazy? You can't _kill_ our kit!"

"But wouldn't it be doing the Clan a favour? We're only just getting used to being safe in our own dens again: you only killed Frostfoot a couple of moons ago!" Blossombreeze's breathing had quickened, upsetting the kits kneading at her tummy.

"No! I can't believe you won't accept her just because of her appearance! Just because she looks like _him_ doesn't make _her_ a _murderer_!" Sunfur hissed. His mate flinched at the word, so he softened his tone. "I will _always_ love our kits _equally_ , can't you promise me you'll do the same?" He looked at her with pleading eyes.

"..Alright," she replied eventually, but a burning hatred was growing in her eyes, unnoticed by Sunfur.

Satisfied, he stood up, his head bumping into the densely woven roof a few times as he made his way out of the narrow entrance, but he froze as he heard Blossombreeze snarl, _"Well she is no kit of mine."_

* * *

 **A.N. Hello! This is the prologue/first chapter in my first fanfiction, so if you have any feedback/advice, PLEASE post a review, it's greatly appreciated! :) I'm planning on updating every few days in the holidays for this story, so I'll try to stick to that as much as possible, but I kinda suck at sticking to schedules so... I'm also creating the Alliances at the moment, so if you want to submit any OCs, feel free! (This story is set in the old forest, waaay before Firestar turns up,** **but after SkyClan leaves, so I'll be using the four usual Clans.) Thanks again for reading, and enjoy!**

 **-An anonymous bookaholic**


	2. Chapter One

**This is something I forgot to put in the prologue, and this applies to every chapter, so...**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Warriors *regretful sigh***

 **Anyway, here it is!**

* * *

 **Chapter One**

"Why won't she open her eyes?"

Echokit had heard those words many times, repeated over and over by her mother and siblings, as they nudged her and prodded her. They'd all opened theirs, of course, Echokit had heard her mother purring with delight when they had done so. She hoped she'd make her proud like they had.

She thought about all the things Blossombreeze had told them about; the Warrior Code, Clan life, StarClan, the other Clans, and her favourite: old tales of their Clan. _I'm going to be the best warrior ever, just like the cats in the stories!_

She knew her litter wasn't alone in the nursery, there were three other kits, not including her and her siblings, with more on the way.

"Come _on_ Echokit," groaned her sister, Rosekit. "We want to explore the camp!" Rosekit had opened her eyes first, a few days after the kitting, and she had been quickly followed by Foxkit and Pinekit, but that had all happened yesterday.

After some more persuasion from her sister, and moans from her brothers, Echokit finally decided to pry open her eyes. The first thing that hit her was the light. The nursery was bright, much brighter than Echokit thought it would be, compared to the comforting darkness from before. She winced, shook her head, blinked a few times, and took her surroundings in.

She was lying in a nest of dry reeds, with a few feathers woven in, next to her mother. Blossombreeze looked huge compared to her, and was snoring softly, her golden tail draped delicately over her pretty face. _I wonder if I look like her..._ Echokit glanced at her sister, who, along with her brothers, was talking to the other kits. Rosekit looked like her mother, with golden fur, slender limbs, dainty paws and a finely shaped head. She had soft green eyes that sparkled as she listened to the other kits. Echokit looked down at her own paws. They were silver, with black rings at the top of them, which faded towards the bottom. She analysed the rest of her coat, grooming it as she went, finding it to be silver like her paws, with black spots dotted evenly over her back, and a stubby tail, which was similar to her legs, with black rings running down it.

Concentrating once more on the den, she gazed up at its roof, which was woven thickly of reeds, with a few shells and sparkly objects embedded in it here and there, catching the light and scattering it throughout the nursery.

On one side of the den lay Pearlshine, a pregnant white and ginger queen, who had been watching Echokit carefully with dark amber eyes. Next to Pearlshine was another queen, Dawnfeather, a longhaired tortoiseshell she-cat, who was napping whilst her kit, Meadowkit, was chatting with Echokit's siblings, and the other litter of kits, Stormkit and Amberkit. Their mother, Shimmerpelt, a beautiful, longhaired silver she-cat with icy blue eyes and a soft feathery tail, was watching the kits talk with mild interest, whilst grooming her already radiant pelt.

As Echokit began to make her way out of the nest, Rosekit turned around, and spotted her clambering towards them.

"Echokit's opened her eyes!" She purred. "Now we can go out to see the camp!" Rosekit trotted over to Echokit, and examined her eyes. "They're blue, like Shimmerpelt's," she reported.

"Thanks," Echokit replied, smiling up at her. Even though she and Rosekit were from the same litter, Echokit realised her older sister was quite a lot taller than her, and so were her brothers. Amberkit and her brother, Stormkit, padded over to them, towering over her and her sister, despite them only being three moons old. Meadowkit also came over, followed by Foxkit and Pinekit. Meadowkit was two moons old, but only slightly closer to Echokit's height.

Rosekit scampered over towards her mother and prodded her with a delicate paw.

"Mama! Mama! Echokit has opened her eyes! Can we explore the camp now?" she pleaded, gazing at her mother beseechingly. Blossombreeze opened her eyes and smiled at her daughter.

"Of course you can, my darling little Rosekit! Make sure the other kits look after you and your brothers, I don't know what I would do without my beautiful little kits!" Blossombreeze gushed, covering the golden she-kit in licks.

"Eww! Mum!" Rosekit squealed, trying to pull away.

"Hush now dear, we want the Clan to see you at your best!" Blossombreeze meowed with a flick of her tail. "Foxkit! Pinekit! Come over here! How you get so dirty without leaving the nursery is beyond me!" She purred good-naturedly then continued to lick the kits relentlessly, rasping her tongue steadily over their untamed pelts.

Once she had finished with them, Echokit puffed out her chest, expecting to be praised by Blossombreeze for having such a clean coat. She made a little squeak to attract her attention.

Blossombreeze gazed coldly at her youngest daughter. "Echokit, why is your pelt plastered down so much? It looks ridiculous," she snapped, glaring at her. Echokit's eyes widened and began to fill with tears.

 _What did I do wrong? It doesn't look that bad.._ _Maybe she was angry that I took so long to open my eyes.._ Behind her she could hear snorts of laughter coming from the other kits. Rosekit glowered at them.

"Well, I think it looks fine," she declared to Echokit. Then she turned back to the older kits. "So, can you show us around now?" Rosekit suggested. Echokit felt her excitement grow at the prospect of exploring the camp, despite the cruel remark from her mother.

"Hmmm... I suppose we could," drawled Stormkit. "But you've got to keep up with us. We wouldn't want anyone to get left behind, would we?" he said, staring in particular at Echokit.

"I guess," Rosekit mumbled, glancing down at her sister. Then he brushed past them and strode out of the entrance with a look full of confidence, but Rosekit rolled her eyes and pulled a retching face, and they both burst into a fit of giggles.

"Come on; we're getting left behind!" Echokit mewed, once she recovered, and the sisters darted out of the nursery.

* * *

"It's huge!" gasped Rosekit, gazing around with her mouth open. Echokit nodded, lost for words.

Inside the nursery, it had been warm and milky, but outside, a cool breeze buffeted their fur, and grey clouds raced across the sky.

"Come on, we'll show you the medicine cat den first," called Amberkit, and the others padded after her. Echokit followed after them slowly, taking in every detail as they went. The island itself was slightly sloped, surrounded by reeds and sedge, with the odd bull-rush here and there, and had a few small, gnarled willows around its edge. On either side of the nursery there was a path through the reeds leading to the river, which was flowing swiftly in the brisk breeze. Near the entrance, in the centre of the clearing, was the fresh-kill pile, where a few warriors were lying down and sharing tongues.

She looked ahead to see Rosekit's pink tail-tip just disappearing behind some feathery fronds of sedge.

"Rosekit! Wait for me!" she cried, scampering towards the waving leaves as fast as her short legs would allow. In her haste, she hadn't seen a small root sticking out of the ground, which she promptly tripped over.

As she stood up and shook the sand out of her fur, Meadowkit, who had been trailing behind the others, turned round and spotted her.

"Aww! Ickle baby Echokit is so small and pathetic, she can't even walk!" she sneered, but when a warrior shot her a disapproving look, she quickly hurried off.

Echokit sniffed, and plodded over to the medicine cat's den, but her spirit returned when she saw her sister and the others listening to a pale grey tom, their eyes wide.

"You must be Echokit," the tom meowed in a tone Echokit couldn't quite place, but she nodded nonetheless. "I was just explaining to your siblings and friends about the different herbs we use here, you never know, they might come in useful someday," he finished with a smile.

"Skypaw! Stop gossiping and go and find those daisy leaves for Sweetfur, _now_!" yelled a cat from inside the den.

"Sorry, that's Olivenose the medicine cat. I'd better go, she can get a bit cranky sometimes!" he meowed mischievously.

"I heard that!" hissed the voice, but this time with humour. Skypaw gave them a friendly nod, and padded out of the clearing. Once he had gone, Echokit looked around.

They were sitting in a small clearing surrounded by sedge in the shadow of one of the old willows. A pungent, yet calming smell drifted from a den woven with reeds. From inside came a few meows, and a young, tabby she-cat emerged. An old, wiry brown she-cat padded out beside her.

"Now remember Duckpaw, don't put to much weight on that paw, or it might start bleeding again," meowed the older she-cat. Duckpaw nodded, and limped out of the clearing, smiling weakly at the kits as she passed.

"Now, you lot," Olivenose grumbled, turning to the kits, but avoiding Echokit's gaze. "Go and play elsewhere, I have work to do and cats to mend." They all nodded and filed out of the clearing with the others.

"Where can we go next?" Rosekit asked, nearly jumping up and down in excitement.

"I think we should end at the leader's den, so how about the apprentices' den?" Meadowkit mewed. The others agreed, and padded after her.

"We're going to be apprentices soon," Amberkit boasted.

"Don't be such a minnow-brain! You've still got three moons to go!" Meadowkit flicked her ears impatiently. Amberkit sniffed in response, and marched into the den.

It was smaller than the nursery, but with the same internal design of reeds and feathers. Echokit looked up to see a densely woven roof, with a few fronds of moss poking through, which covered the outside of the den like a thick pelt. Two of the nests were empty, but the other two contained sleeping cats. One was a white and grey tom, and the other was a light grey she-cat, who was giving her paws a good wash.

"That's Lilacpaw," explained Stormkit. "And that's her brother Whitepaw."

Lilacpaw looked round and purred as she spotted the kits. When she noticed Echokit at the back of the group, she took a sharp breath.

"You must be Blossombreeze's kits!" Lilacpaw stuttered slightly, studying them. As she did so, Echokit noticed her eyes were an unusual shade of violet. "What are your names?"

"I'm Foxkit."

"Pinekit."

"And I'm Echokit, and this is my sister-"

"Rosekit," the golden she-kit finished, smiling at her sister. Echokit grinned back, purring.

 _My brothers might be grumpy fur-balls, but I've got the best sister ever! I hope we're always best friends, just like sisters should be! ..I wish Mama loved me like Rosekit does.._ She sighed, thinking back to her mother's harsh comment.

"I-I think I'd better go," Lilacpaw meowed, yawning. "We went to the gathering last night, and it finished late, so we were allowed a lie-in, but I don't think Smokeypelt would like me to miss any more training. And I'd better wake this lazy fur-ball up; Featherstream won't want him to be late either." She padded over to her brother and prodded him in the side. Whitepaw rolled over, grumbling at his littermate to go away, but she continued poking him with a small grey paw.

"Let's leave her to it," murmured Rosekit. Echokit and the others mewed their agreements, and went back out.

"Can we go to the elders den next?" Foxkit asked.

"Sure," Meadowkit replied. "It's over there. Last one there is a piece of crowfood!" The kits set off, and Echokit was doing quite well considering she was the smallest there, until the last moment, when Meadowkit snapped round to Echokit, stuck her paw out in front of her and sneered, "Nice try, _Clumsy_ kit. _"_ Echokit gasped as she skidded across the clearing, and rolled to a stop next to a surprised golden-brown she-cat.

"Are you alright?" The she-cat asked. Echokit spat out some sand and dusted her fur down for the second time that day. Looking up she saw two worried green eyes peering down at her. Echokit nodded, shy under the concerned gaze. "Are you Echokit, Blossombreeze's daughter?" The golden she-cat began smoothing down her ruffled pelt whilst she waited for an answer. Echokit simply nodded once more.

"I'm Honeycloud, one of your older sisters. Don't worry, I saw what happened there with Meadowkit; I'll make sure to tell Dawnfeather," Honeycloud smiled once more, then turned back round to the grey tabby tom she had been talking to.

"Echokit, what happened?!" Rosekit cried, running over to her. Meadowkit was following behind Rosekit, and looked down at her meaningfully.

"Nothing, I... I guess I must have tripped," Echokit stuttered, peering up at Meadowkit nervously. She smirked down at her, and sauntered back to join the rest of the kits.

"Come and see the elders den Rosekit! You don't have to wait for Echokit, she's just holding us up," Stormkit called, beckoning to her.

"Of course I'm waiting for her: she's my sister!" Rosekit replied indignantly. Then she approached the entrance, with Echokit by her, and they marched in together. But as they made their way in, Echokit got pushed to the back of the group by the other kits.

The den was the same size as the apprentice den, but it was woven out of willow stems, with large nests of reeds and feathers. In each nest lay an old cat, one of which was snoring loudly. A cream coloured she-cat lifted her head and purred loudly.

"New kits!" Her excited cry woke one of the elders, but the other snored on resiliently. "I'm Sweetfur, and this is Speckledear and Berrycloud," she meowed, pointing to the sleeping grey tom with half a tail, and an old black and white she-cat with her tail. "Wake up lazybones," she hissed, prodding Speckledear in the ribs. He rolled over and opened a clouded yellow eye. The other flew open as he found himself nose to nose with Rosekit. He looked her up and down ill-temperedly.

"You must be Blossombreeze's kit." He surveyed the other kits that had entered, grunted a complement to Foxkit about how he would make a good warrior, to which he swelled with pride, but completely ignored Pinekit. "I could've sworn Blossombreeze had four kits.." he muttered.

Then Echokit pushed past the others and into his line of view. He jumped up, his pupils contracted and he puffed out his tail.

"OUT! GET OUT! I will not have THAT MURDERER in my den!" Speckledear screeched, his fur standing on end.

"Speckledear! That's Blossombreeze's daughter, not Frostfoot-" Sweetfur tried to calm him, although she too had a look of fear plastered onto her face.

"I recognise my son's murderer! I knew you'd come back you crowfood eating, fox-hearted kittypet!"

"I think you'd better go," Sweetfur murmured as Berrycloud desperately tried to calm the agitated tom down. "But come again soon! I'm sure Berrycloud will have a few stories to tell you!" She smiled at them apologetically as they hastily made their way out.

Once outside, Echokit stood, shaken, her eyes filling with tears. Meanwhile, Rosekit sat down with a huff.

"I can't _believe_ he was so mean to you! You haven't done anything wrong!" She fumed. The others quickly crowded round to comfort her.

"Relax, Rosekit, he just mistook her for another cat, that's all," Stormkit mewed, placing his tail on her shoulder. She smiled up at him gratefully.

"Yeah, you're right," she brushed past the others and rubbed against Echokit. "See, it wasn't anything to do with you. He's just a grumpy, blind old badger."

Echokit sniffed, then looked puzzled. "But I wonder who Frostfoot is.." Rosekit narrowed her eyes in concentration.

"Mama didn't mention that name when she was talking about the Clan.. Do you guys know who he is?" Stormkit, Amberkit and Meadowkit all exchanged uneasy glances.

"We're not allowed to talk about him, but if you catch the elders on a good day, they can tell you the story," Amberkit mewed.

"Let's go to the warrior's den now," Meadowkit suggested, changing the subject.

The gaggle of kits quickly scampered across the clearing, passing the fresh-kill pile that consisted of a few minnows and a gleaming trout on top, whilst the darkening clouds above grew heavier in the early afternoon.

The warrior's den was next to the camp entrance, and was much larger than any of the other dens. It still had the same reed and willow stem configuration, and inside, the roof arched majestically over the many mossy nests. It was completely empty, all of the cats being outside in the clearing or on hunting or border patrols.

"Whose is nest is _that_?" Pinekit asked, staring at the largest nest in the centre.

"That's Sunfur's nest. He's the deputy, so he gets to sleep in the middle, where it's warmest," replied Stormkit, with a hint of jealousy.

"Wow! Papa must be huge!" Echokit mewed, staring at the crater-like hollow in the ground. Foxkit nodded in agreement.

"I bet he's the strongest cat in the Clan! I'm gonna be just like him!" He puffed out his chest proudly. Stormkit looked down at him and snorted.

"You might have to grow a bit first. Come on, we just have to show you the leader's den now," he trotted off.

The leader's den was between the elder's den and the apprentice's den, and was much smaller that the others, and was made of willow stems that were woven into the gnarled roots of an ancient willow that overhung it. It looked fairly dim inside, but as the kits peered into it, they saw something move, and a well-muscled, russet she-cat strode out. She smiled down at them uncomfortably.

"Hello kits.. Are you being shown around?" They nodded, and Foxkit spoke up.

"Yeah, we're nearly done, but we thought we'd leave the leader's den last, 'cause it's the coolest," he grinned up a her.

"Well, uh.. I'm Vinestar, and this is my den. There's not much to see, but it's all I need. Do you have any questions you would like to ask me?"

"Umm.. why can't we be apprentices now?" Pinekit questioned with wide eyes. Vinestar looked at him with mirth.

"Because you have to be six moons old to be an apprentice, but you can always practice being apprentices. You can learn to swim next to the nursery in the river, and maybe some of the apprentices can teach you how to fish, when they're not busy."

"Okay," Pinekit looked satisfied with his answer.

Suddenly, a fat blob of water landed on Echokit's back. She shivered and shook it off, and squinted her eyes through the willow branches above to the slate grey clouds above. The others followed her gaze as a few more droplets splattered onto the sandy bank they were standing on.

"I think you kits had better get back to the nursery before your mothers get worried about you in the rain. They wouldn't be very happy if you came back sopping wet now, would they?" Vinestar meowed. "Run along now." As they scampered away from the ancient willow, Vinestar called out once more, "Echokit, could you come over here for a moment?"

Echokit turned around, surprised at being directly addressed by her leader. She came over to Vinestar's side and lowered her head respectfully.

"Yes?" she mewed as Vinestar observed her.

"Have you noticed any cats looking at you.. strangely?" she asked cautiously.

Echokit thought back to all the cats she had met today. "A couple," she admitted.

"Ah. Don't worry about them. See, most of the cats in our Clan hold a grudge against a cat - who looked very similar to you. He wronged them in a way that cannot, and will not be forgiven. But don't worry, their attitude will soon fade, as you are not the cat that he was, and hopefully you never will be. Go and catch up with the others; your mother will be waiting." She smiled and gestured for her to leave.

As Echokit scurried through the now pouring rain, her thoughts strayed to the cat Vinestar had talked about.

 _Was he the same cat that Speckledear mistook me for? Who did he murder? Why did he kill those cats?_

By the time Echokit had reached the nursery her whole pelt was soaked through, and she was looking forwards to a warm nest to fall asleep in. She caught sight of Blossombreeze grooming her siblings' fur. Her gaze snapped round to her youngest kit when she stepped into the nest.

"Echokit, _WHAT_ do you think you are doing?!" Blossombreeze shrieked. "You're soaking wet! Get out of the nest: you'll make it all damp!"

Before Echokit could apologise, she cut her off, "And _where_ have you been? Did you think that you could play outside in this weather? Why didn't you stay with the others?"

"I-I'm sorry Mama.. Vinestar wanted to talk to me-"

"Vinestar! Don't be ridiculous Echokit, why would she want to talk to you?" Blossombreeze spluttered.

"She wanted to give me a bit of advice," Echokit answered, hurt her mother didn't believe her.

"It's true Mama," Rosekit interjected. "I heard Vinestar call Echokit back after we talked to her." Blossombreeze looked at Rosekit, momentarily stumped. Then her eyes hardened again.

"Well, that must have been some kind of record," Blossombreeze sneered. "I heard about your little incident with Speckledear; I can't believe you would deliberately upset an elder, Echokit! I can only assume Vinestar was telling you off for that, and rightly so! Never have I known a kit so young to get into so much trouble!"

"But Mama-" Echokit tried, desperate to prove she had done nothing wrong.

"No 'buts', Echokit. And stop calling me 'Mama', it makes you sound like a baby." And with that, Blossombreeze turned away from the silver kit and closed her eyes.

Echokit stared at her mother in dismay, but didn't take the argument further, in fear of angering Blossombreeze even more than she had already.

As she settled down, cleaning her pelt of all the moisture that clung to it, she realised Pearlshine and Dawnfeather were looking at her pitifully. Before she could think too much about what Blossombreeze had said, exhaustion took over and she fell into a deep, but troubled sleep.

* * *

 **A.N. Hello again! Sorry things are moving quite slowly, but (hopefully) in the near future,** **the plot should start to get moving… *dramatic jazz hands*** **Anyway, THANK YOU FOR THE LOVELY REVIEWS! I'm glad you're finding this interesting, and you seem to hate Blossombreeze, but who can blame you! If you do want to submit any OCs, I can still take them (it's probably best if they are warriors), so the Alliances should be up soon. I will try to update soon, and the next chapter may give you a bit more information on this mysterious Frostfoot.. Enjoy!**

 **-An anonymous bookaholic**


	3. Chapter Two

**I do not own Warriors...**

* * *

 **Chapter Two**

Echokit woke to the faint sound of someone calling for help. At first she thought she had imagined it, but then she heard it again, just over the pitter-patter of the rain on the reeds that had been unrelenting for the past few days.

 _"H-help! Can anyone hear me? Help!"_ It was barely more than a whisper, and everyone else slept on soundly.

"Pearlshine, is that you?" Echokit called through the darkness.

 _"Yes, oh thank StarClan someone finally heard me! Echokit, wake the others and tell them to get Olivenose,"_ she wheezed.

"What's wrong Pearlshine? Are you okay?"

 _"No sweetie, my kitting has started early,"_ she winced and gasped. _"And I think something's wrong. Please hurry!"_

At that Echokit turned and tugged at Blossombreeze's sleeping form.

"Ma- Blossombreeze, Blossombreeze, wake up!" Echokit head butted her in a desperate attempt to rouse her, but to no avail.

"Echokit, what are you doing?" Rosekit mumbled. The young kit turned to her sister.

"Rosekit, wake Blossombreeze and the other queens up, I need to get Olivenose; Pearlshine's kitting has started, and she says something is wrong!" The fearful tone of Echokit's voice chased away all of Rosekit's sleepiness, and she immediately set to work trying to wake their deeply slumbering mother.

Trusting her sister to do a good job, Echokit rushed out of the nursery and into the steadily falling rain. It was almost completely dark outside as the clouds were covering the moon. Echokit could see only vague shadowy outlines through the persistent shower, so instead she followed her sense of smell. Underneath the dampening smell of water and the tangy smell of fish, she could just make out the calming scent of herbs.

After splashing through the shallow puddles that had collected, Echokit reached the entrance to the den she had been shown by the other kits.

"Olivenose! Skypaw!" Echokit meowed as loudly as she dared. She was met with a few grunts. "Please come, Pearlshine is in trouble!" She then heard something roll over and the rustling of a cat coming out of their den and into the medicine cat's clearing.

"Echokit? What's the matter?" Skypaw whispered. "What's wrong with Pearlshine?"

"Come quickly, Pearlshine's kits are coming!" Echokit replied, her voice urgent.

"They shouldn't be - it's too early. Are you sure?" Skypaw mewed, shaking the raindrops out of his fur.

As soon as the words had left his mouth, a thin wail rose from the nursery. Skypaw stiffened, then dashed back inside the den. Not long after, he and Olivenose, now both carrying herbs, darted past Echokit in the direction of the cry. Echokit stumbled after them, and as she passed the other dens, she could hear a couple of warriors muttering as they looked out of their den and into the downpour to find out what was going on.

When she reached the nursery, she was met with a commotion. Olivenose had to order everyone out so she could concentrate, so all the recently roused queens were shooing their kits out into the shower.

"Mama, where are we going?" Pinekit asked wearily as Echokit joined her siblings exiting the den.

"We're going to the warriors' den," Shimmerpelt declared, dragging Amberkit and Stormkit along with her.

"Can we go to the warriors' den too Mama? We can meet Papa then!" Foxkit exclaimed.

"No, precious. You can't wake your father up; he needs to rest. He will probably have a busy day tomorrow," Blossombreeze replied kindly. Foxkit pouted.

"We never get to see Papa, cause he's 'always busy'. When are we gonna get to meet him?"

"Soon dear, don't worry-"

Blossombreeze was cut off by a large golden tabby pushing past the confused warriors in their direction.

"What's wrong with Pearlshine? Is she alright? Is everything okay in there?" Firestorm, the large tom, demanded breathlessly. When he tried to enter the nursery, Echokit could hear Olivenose chiding him fiercely. The medicine cat sounded worried. He exited the den and began pacing fearfully outside, oblivious to the rain drenching his flame-coloured pelt.

"Mama, I'm cold…" Pinekit whined. "Please can we go to a new den?" Blossombreeze looked down at her son forlornly as the other queens shepherded their kits into the warriors' den.

"Of course sweetie. Let's go now. But I think it might be a bit of a squish," she responded. They trooped in silently, and Blossombreeze tensed when a high yowl resonated across the island.

* * *

It hadn't been long since they had settled down when Echokit heard Blossombreeze's soft snores begin. A little while later, Rosekit poked Echokit in the side.

 _"Psst! Echokit! Are you awake?"_ Rosekit hissed. Echokit huffed and rolled over.

"I am now, what do you wan-"

 _"Shhhh!"_ Rosekit slapped her tail to Echokit's mouth. _"Don't wake Blossombreeze!"_ Echokit rolled her eyes and spat out her sister's tail.

" _Well, what do you want?"_

 _"I..I can't sleep,"_ Rosekit admitted.

 _"Why not?"_

 _"I keep hearing Pearlshine - I'm worried about her... And plus it's so crowded in here,"_ she gestured to the den heaving with snoring cats. _"I wanna go outside - just for a little while."_ Echokit sighed at her sister's pleading tone, but couldn't help agreeing with her. It was hard to sleep with the noisy warriors, and the infrequent, tormented wails chilled her to the bone.

 _"Okay.."_ she agreed eventually. They carefully picked their way across the crowded den of cats towards the dim light of the entrance. They snuck out, clambered behind the den and huddled underneath a large root of the willow tree, looking out into the pelting rain. Rosekit sighed.

"I wish Mama was nicer to you," Echokit heard Rosekit murmur quietly.

Echokit looked over at her, surprised. She knew Blossombreeze didn't like her, but she didn't think Rosekit had noticed. _Can everyone tell Blossombreeze doesn't like me? Do they think something's wrong with me? Why can't I just make Blossombreeze proud?!_ Echokit felt sick. _I never asked to be like that murderer! If only I could just be more like Rosekit; everyone likes her!_ Thoughts swirled around in Echokit's head, and the tears gathered in her eyes, threatening to spill over-

A sudden calm sensation washed over her. Her bad thoughts drained away into the cool ground beneath her paws, and her muscles relaxed. She breathed in deeply, as the tranquillity brushed against her flank.

Without warning, a twig nearby them snapped loudly. Echokit jolted out of her trance-like state, her ears pricked up. Looking over, she saw Rosekit doing the same.

"Kits?"

The confused murmur rose from their left, next to another ancient willow near the camp entrance. A huge shadowy figure padded towards them.

"Why are you out here?"

"Why're you?" Rosekit retorted suspiciously.

"Because I'm guarding the camp," the cat replied, amused by the young kit's upfront attitude. "Now you answer my question."

They hesitated

"I- We can't sleep," Rosekit meowed carefully. "Who are you, anyway? I don't recognise your scent.."

"I'm Sunfur, your deputy."

"..Sunfur- Papa?" Echokit realised. "It's Papa!" she nudged Rosekit excitedly. Her sister stared over in awe.

"Wow.. Papa's _huge_ ," Rosekit breathed.

"Echokit! Rosekit! Is that you?" The silhouette came forwards, purring. "Hello my little kits! How are you?"

"We're good, Papa! How're you?"

"I'm very well thank you!" Sunfur chuckled. "But why are you still awake? You said you couldn't sleep?" He glanced down at them worriedly as they pressed against his warm flank.

"It- It's cause the warriors' den is so noisy, and.." Echokit cringed as another cry rang out, but continued, "we're worried about Pearlshine." Sunfur stared down at his kits comfortingly and drew them closer to him with his thick tail.

"Oh, kits.. You don't have to worry about Pearlshine; Olivenose and Skypaw are doing their best for her. She'll be fine," he soothed, but his tense stance said otherwise. "Why don't I get you back to the warriors' den now, okay?" Rosekit let out a huff.

"But Papa…"

"You need to go and get some sleep, Blossombreeze will be angry otherwise," Sunfur reasoned.

"No. I don't want to go back; I'm not tired!" To prove her point, she stepped back and stared her father in the eye defiantly. Sunfur observed her carefully. He then raised an eyebrow and looked down at her disapprovingly.

"Rosekit.." he warned, but she held her ground. She had made her decision, so she wasn't going back on it. Sunfur sighed.

"Alright. But where do you want to go? You can't stay out here; it's too cold, and I have to get back to guarding the camp.." He paused, thinking. "Oh, I know! You could go to the elders' den. I was just checking in on them before I heard you, and they were all awake. Poor Sweetfur is Pearlshine's mother, and she's worried sick. You two would make a good distraction to keep her mind off it."

Echokit stiffened at the prospect of returning to the elders' den, but Rosekit and her father failed to notice. She hoped Speckledear didn't shout at her again, she'd been in enough trouble with Blossombreeze the last time she'd met him.

"Yeah! Come on, Echokit! Maybe Berrycloud can tell us a story - I heard the one about how she and her sister escaped from their Twolegs and found the Clans is the best!"

The two kits scurried out from underneath the willow tree and crossed the clearing, their father protecting them from the driving wind and rain with his powerful form. They splashed through the growing puddles, all earning themselves muddy paws, before reaching the welcoming entrance to the den.

"Sweetfur? Berrycloud? Speckledear? Can we come in?" Sunfur called quietly.

"Sunfur? Back so soon?" Speckledear called. "Yes, yes, do come in. Who's with you?"

"My daughters. I was hoping they could stay with you, seeing as you're all awake. They don't want to go back to the warriors' den. Apparently it's too noisy," he finished of, purring.

"Well I couldn't agree with them more." Speckledear replied gruffly. "You young warriors are the noisiest bunch I've ever heard! Always snoring and complaining about one thing or another..."

"He can talk!" Echokit murmured. Rosekit snorted, but Sunfur overheard and quickly shushed them.

"So, is it alright if I leave them with you?"

"I suppose.." Speckledear grumbled. "Your daughters you say? Why that would be.. Oh. _You,_ " he hissed at Echokit, and promptly rolled over. Sunfur looked down at his daughter, confused, but then he purred.

"I wondered how long it would be before my kits got into trouble with you, Speckledear. But I really must go now," he meowed, then added on a darker note, "If there is a… change of events, I will be sure to let you know." He left the den with a small smile to his kits.

"Now, Echokit, Rosekit, are there any stories you'd like to hear?" Sweetfur purred.

"I wanna hear about how Berrycloud found the Clans!" Rosekit squeaked.

"Now, that is a good story! What about you, Echokit? Are there any stories you want to hear?" Berrycloud meowed, as she rolled over to join in the hushed conversation.

" _I_ want to hear the story of Sunfur and Frostfoot!" Echokit announced, pleased she had found an opportunity to ask. Rosekit nodded enthusiastically.

"Oh yeah! That sounds exciting!" she agreed. The kits failed to notice the elders exchange troubled glances.

"Are you sure?" Berrycloud asked tentatively. "It's quite scary."

"We won't get scared, will we Echokit!" Rosekit insisted.

"Nope! We won't," the smaller kit promised. The elder let out a sigh.

"Very well." Sweetfur settled down, tucking her tail neatly into her body. "Who wants to tell the story?"

"I believe Speckledear knows it the best," replied Berrycloud mildly. "But I doubt he's in the mood for telling stories." The back of the 'sleeping' tom stiffened. "Although he does always say we tell the story wrong..." Speckledear snorted and rolled back over.

"Fine," he hissed, then added, "But now you owe me a trout."

"So kits, you want to hear the story of Sunfur and Frostfoot?" The sisters nodded eagerly. "Well, it all started many seasons ago, when your father, mother, and her brother - Frostfoot - were young warriors. They were all good, hard-working cats, and were very close, however your father and Frostfoot had a habit of getting into trouble. I remember one time, just at the end of newleaf, they began playing tricks on each other. It escalated so far, that Sunfur ended up in the medicine cat den, covered in bee stings and honey." Speckledear chuckled. "It's been a while since I laughed like I did when I saw him like that.

"It was not long after that, when there was a battle with WindClan. They had been caught crossing the border many times, after a disease had wiped out many of their rabbits. So naturally, we retaliated. We attacked them at the border, but they were prepared. As I was fighting, I saw a huge brute of a warrior dive at Blossombreeze, who had been terribly injured, but Sunfur intercepted him. He was still young at this point, but one of the best fighters in the Clan, and could be outmatched by very few cats. Unfortunately, this cat, Marshtooth, I think his name was, happened to be one of them. Your father was fighting for his life, but none of us could help him - we were all trapped in our own battles. But then, out of nowhere, Frostfoot leapt into Sunfur's battle, and I heard Sunfur call out ' _Took you long enough_.' They continued fighting, eventually overpowering Marshtooth, but the whole time, they would _not stop bickering._ After the battle, they soon gained apprentices, and Sunfur later took Blossombreeze for his mate.

"But it was last leaf-bare that the first killing took place. Our then deputy, Aspenfall, was the one to find the body of a senior warrior: Toadstem. He was discovered drifting downstream, with.." Speckledear paused, looking up at the wide-eyed kits, "with a fatal injury.

"The killings continued for many moons - no cat was safe. There was an apprentice, Cinderpaw, who was killed, and Mouseclaw, a pregnant queen..." Speckledear paused again, and took a deep breath, "Raventhroat, my son, and Icefur, another senior warrior. However, the last of these killings was in early greenleaf. Aspenfall, our deputy, was found, like the others, drifting down the river with a fatal bite to his neck. Sunfur discovered the body at moonhigh, and brought him into the camp. He was distraught over Aspenfall's death. He had been Sunfur's mentor, and a great deputy.

"The next morning, after the vigil, Frostfoot had an argument with Sunfur, no one knows what about, but it was common knowledge that their friendship had deteriorated over the past few moons. They both went missing after sunhigh, so Vinestar postponed announcing who was to become deputy until the full Clan could gather. At sundown, a search party was organised and was preparing to go out and find them, when Sunfur staggered into the camp, dragging Frostfoot's body behind him." Rosekit gasped, and Echokit stomach turned cold, but Speckledear carried on. "Sunfur then explained what had happened as his wounds were treated: how he had gone back to where he had found the body of Aspenfall, and followed to the river upstream, hoping to find a clue as to who the killer was, when he reached the waterfall. He climbed to the top of it, where he found a pool of blood on a large rock at the edge of the waterfall. He recognised it as Aspenfall's, and then he had noticed a clump of silver tabby fur next to it… Fur that had belonged to Frostfoot. But, at that moment, Frostfoot came back to clean up the blood and fur from his murder, where he found Sunfur at the scene. Frostfoot attacked Sunfur, and they fought until Sunfur overpowered Frostfoot, who had been distracted, gloating over the death of Aspenfall, and killed him.

"Once Sunfur had finished his explanation, the deputy ceremony took place, and your father was made deputy as a reward for protecting the Clan." Speckledear finished.

"Wow.." breathed Rosekit. "Papa's _awesome_."

"Yeah," Echokit nodded, trying to take in the whole story. "But what happened to Frostfoot?"

"There was no vigil for him, and he was buried away from the rest of the warriors, just like he deserved," Speckledear growled. Berrycloud smiled faintly.

"Now dears, do you want to go back to the warrior's den to Blossombreeze? You must be feeling sleepy now," she meowed.

"No, not really.." Rosekit finished with a yawn.

"Maybe we should go back," Echokit replied, yawning too. Rosekit blinked drowsily back at her.

"Yeah that's probably a good idea."

The kits thanked the elders and bid them goodnight, and began making their way back to the warrior's den. As they trudged across the drizzly clearing, they noticed the cries from the nursery had quietened down, and Firestorm had disappeared inside. Whether this was good news or not, neither of them could tell.

As they drew closer to the warriors' den, they noticed the faint outline of a cat at the entrance of the camp.

"There's Papa!" whispered Rosekit, in awe of the huge silhouette. Echokit felt comforted knowing he was watching over the camp, like warrior of StarClan. His broad outline stiffened as the kits passed him, but he turned around and called out softly to them,

"Goodnight, my kits! I hope to see you in the morning."

They entered the warriors' den, and were engulfed by a wall of warmth. Tiptoeing around the furry bodies, they found the makeshift nest that contained their mother and siblings.

The two sisters snuggled down, oblivious to their damp, muddy paws, and were claimed by sleep quickly, their dreams filled with images of two huge cats fighting - one shining like an orange flame, the other, a dark creeping shadow, with a once white, blood covered paw.

* * *

 **A.N. Heh… So, I've been away for a while… a long while… and I g** **uess it turns out I'm even worse at sticking to schedules than I originally realised…**

 **But, in all honesty, I didn't like this chapter when I was writing it (hence the year and a half delay…) and when I eventually did finish it, I just never got round to uploading it. Oh well...**

 **To those who reviewed - THANK YOU! It's great to know your opinions on the story!**

 **And if you would like to see a bit more of Guardian, please let me know! (Fingers crossed you won't have to wait another year and a half till my next upload…)**

 **-An Anonymous bookaholic**


	4. Chapter Three

**I do not own Warriors...**

* * *

 **Chapter Three**

Over the two moons since Pearlshine's kits had been born, leaf-bare had only strengthened its grip on RiverClan. Every morning, the cats woke to an island covered in a thick layer of frost, which glittered prettily in the watery yellow sunlight. Excited whispers of snow approaching spread through the nursery and apprentices' den - the apprentices and kits having heard stories of the mysterious white substance that rained from the sky, and so were all eager to see it for themselves.

The two newest additions to the nursery, Cedarkit and Goldenkit, had fitted in well to Clan life, and were doted upon by their father Firestorm. Pearlshine, their mother, had barely survived the kitting, and was recovering from it much more slowly than Olivenose would have liked. Echokit often saw her sitting just outside the nursery, gazing vacantly into the distance. When Echokit had asked her father Sunfur about her, he had explained gently that she was still mourning the death of her third kit - Foamkit, who had been stillborn.

Echokit had seen the tiny, unmoving body of the she-kit the morning after the kitting. Foamkit had lain in the centre of the muddy clearing, her impossibly small, white frame shielded from the rain by the hunched figure of Sweetfur, who had held vigil while waiting for more news of her daughter and two remaining grandsons. The two young brothers had grown quickly, and formed a strong bond with one another, but became good friends with the rest of the kits as well.

"Rosekit! Rosekit! Wake up!" Echokit prodded her sister, noting with a smile that she had grown almost to match her sister's size. The golden she-kit rolled over, grumbling.

"Go-way," Rosekit mumbled.

"The river's frozen over!" Echokit hissed in her ear. Rosekit sat up at once, her green eyes bright.

"How did you find that out? Did you go outside?"

"No, I overheard Whitepaw and Duckpaw talking about it. Do you think we can go out and see?"

"Let's ask Mama," Rosekit decided. "Mama? Mama, can we go outside to see the river?"

The sleeping queen cracked open a blurry eye and purred.

"Of course sweetie," Blossombreeze murmured. "But don't stay out for too long - I don't want you getting sick!"

"Let's go!" Rosekit dashed past Echokit towards the entrance. Echokit followed more slowly, making sure she didn't tread on any of the tails of the sleeping cats. As she passed Pearlshine, Cedarkit's head popped up.

"Where are you going? The golden brown kit asked drowsily.

"The river's frozen over - we're going to see!" Echokit informed him as she passed by.

"Oh! Wait for me!" Echokit heard the call and paused at the entrance, waiting as the smaller kit came scurrying towards her, shaking his head free of sleep.

Rosekit poked her head back inside the den.

"Come on, it's so beautiful out here!" she meowed, before going back outside. Echokit followed.

As soon as she stepped out of the den, the frigid air penetrated her fur. She breathed in, and the cold stung the back of her throat, making her eyes water, and when she let the breath go, it formed a misty cloud in front of her, stained orange by the morning light. The sun, which had risen not long before, was filtering through the reeds encompassing the island, all of them sparkling with frost in the golden light. The ground beneath Echokit's paws was hard and frozen, and sucked the warmth out of her pads as she stood watching a band of warriors troop out of the camp entrance.

Looking around, Echokit spotted her sister vanishing between the reeds around the side of the nursery. Cedarkit had drawn up next to her, and was gazing around in wonder, the scene of the camp reflected in his wide eyes.

Echokit trotted briskly after her sister, brushing through the icy reeds, and found her sitting at the river's edge.

The river was covered with a thin layer of frosty ice, which stretched from one side of the bank to the other. Towards the middle of it, the kits could see dark water flowing fast just beneath the frozen surface. On the other side of the river, the sun had begun its assent over ThunderClan's forest, the bare trees within it glistening with the silvery frost that coated everything as far as the eye could see.

A sharp wind buffeted their fur, and there was a faint rustling of the reeds as Cedarkit joined them. They sat in silence for a moment.

" _Wow_ ," Cedarkit murmured. "I'm going to get Goldenkit - he'd hate not to have seen this." The tabby tom turned around and headed back to the nursery.

"I can't wait to explore the territory," Echokit meowed. Rosekit purred softly in agreement.

"I hope we can do it together! It should be newleaf by the time we start our training - think of how beautiful the river will be then! And I hope we get good mentors- Oh, hello Stormkit! I didn't know you were awake." The light brown tabby kit had appeared behind them.

"Hey Rosekit - why don't you come and hang out with me? It's boring here... Besides, I wanna show you something," he meowed, flicking one of his ears nonchalantly.

"Oh- alright then," Rosekit agreed reluctantly. Stormkit smirked pointedly at Echokit as Rosekit gave her sister an uncomfortable goodbye, and the two pushed back through the reeds into the clearing.

The silver tabby sighed.

Staring out over the frozen river, an ugly feeling rose up in her chest. _Surely it's unfair that Rosekit is liked so much more than me?_ She squashed the feeling down, and decided to try and find Rosekit, to see what Stormkit wanted to show her.

In the clearing more warriors were stealing out of their nests, their fur fluffed up to keep the cold out. Echokit saw Speckledear and Berrynose poke their heads out of the elders' den, only to shake them in disgust and retreat quickly back inside.

Echokit scanned the clearing for her sister's distinctive tail-tip, but to no avail. She began trotting swiftly across the clearing, passing Cedarkit and Goldenkit heading in the direction she had come from.

"Hello again, Echokit!" Cedarkit called cheerfully. Goldenkit smiled politely at her.

"Hello Cedarkit! Good morning Goldenkit. You don't know where Rosekit and Stormkit went, do you?" Echokit asked. Cedarkit looked thoughtful.

"I don't think so... Oh! I think Stormkit mentioned something to Amberkit earlier about a secret exit out of camp in the dirtplace-"

"Thanks Cedarkit! See you later!" Echokit raced off towards the dirtplace, leaving the two brothers in her wake.

As she entered the dirtplace, she wrinkled her nose against the acrid smell. Echokit couldn't see her sister or the light tabby tom, and was beginning to think Cedarkit had misheard Stormkit, when she caught the sound of his hushed meow.

"Come on - the ice is safe, I promise."

Echokit headed towards the sound of Stormkit's voice, brushing past frozen pieces of sedge, until she broke onto the shore of the island. Ahead of her, she could see Rosekit treading tentatively across the ice towards Stormkit, who had nearly reached the bank on the other side. They were just out of sight of the warriors departing the camp.

"Rosekit! Wait for me!" Echokit meowed, as she began to scramble across the ice. She gasped as her pads were numbed almost instantly by the slippery surface, and she dug her claws in to stop herself sliding. They screeched over the ice painfully.

Rosekit's head whipped round to stare at her.

"Echokit! What are you doing here?" she hissed in shock.

"Following you, obviously," Echokit retorted, trying to regain a grip on the surface as she slid downstream. Stormkit rolled his eyes and hissed in annoyance.

"You're going to get us caught, minnow-brain!" he spat. "Stop sliding!"

Echokit dug her claws deeper into the ice, but continued slipping.

"I can't," she hissed in reply. Rosekit sighed in frustration.

"You're heading straight for the camp entrance! Warrior patrols pass there all the time - you're going to get-" she broke off.

"Echokit? Is that you?" The silver kit froze at the surprised voice behind her. "And you, Rosekit? Stormkit! I can see you hiding in those reeds! You kits aren't allowed to leave the island!"

Echokit skidded to a stop just under the nose of the young warrior Minnowtail. Honeycloud was just behind him.

"What in StarClan's name do you think you're doing?!" Minnowtail exclaimed. "Trying to catch greencough? Honestly! Stormkit - you're nearly an apprentice! You should know better than to leave camp! Especially in this weather!" He paused as a tail was laid gently on his shoulder.

"Oh stop it, Minnowtail! I believe _you_ did much worse as a kit," Honeycloud purred teasingly. "I seem to recall you breaking into the medicine cat's den one time, and convincing Cinderpaw to eat a pawful of poppy seeds! He slept for-" she broke off suddenly, realising what she had said. Her eyes widened in shock and she cried, "Oh StarClan! I'm so sorry Minnowtail, I- I..." Minnowtail shrugged, and then smiled at her weakly.

"You know it's okay to talk about him, Honeycloud. I've been alright for moons." The grey tabby tom studied the she-cat wistfully for a moment. Then he brightened. "Come on kits; if we get back to camp quickly enough, none of the queens will notice that you were gone. Unfortunately, we've got no time to give you a skating lesson - Honeycloud and I have to go fishing downstream..."

* * *

Once the kits had been shepherded back into the clearing by the two warriors, they found the others playing mossball just outside the nursery, their pants of breath foggy in the crisp morning air.

"Yeah! Mossball! Can I play?" Stormkit asked, before diving at an unlucky Foxkit, who had been holding the small ball of spongy moss in his mouth. A few seconds later, the sandy tabby stood up, victoriously clutching the mossball. He passed it to Amberkit, who caught it deftly.

"Come and join us, Rosekit!" Meadowkit called, before jumping to receive the throw from her nursery-mate.

"Sure!"

Rosekit leaped forwards, intercepting Meadowkit's pass to Pinekit. The russet kit spat good-naturedly, and pounced on his sister. They tussled for a few seconds, before Pinekit - who held a slight advantage in size, emerged triumphant. Rosekit shook the sand out of her fur.

"I'll get you next time, Pinekit!" Rosekit promised, her eyes glinting evilly. Pinekit snorted in response.

"I'm _sure_ you will," he meowed sarcastically, grinning, before flinging the ball at his brother Foxkit.

"Can I join in?" Echokit asked Rosekit. The golden she-kit looked round, surprised, as if she had forgotten her sister was there.

"Oh, um, yeah sure... I suppose-" she faltered, eyeing the other kits. Stormkit, who held the ball had overheard, and paused. He glared nastily at Echokit.

"Now, why would we want that?" he sneered scornfully. "You'd probably just get us into trouble - like you did just now!" Foxkit followed Stormkit's lead, turning round to face her.

"Yeah, I betcha don't even know how to play!" he scoffed.

"You're such a loser Echokit, why do you think anyone would want to do anything with you?" Amberkit added.

"Why can't you just be more like Rosekit - she's way cooler than you are."

"I mean, why should we like you, Echokit? Even your own mother hates you!"

Echokit flinched.

"What do you think, Rosekit?" Stormkit asked. There was a pause.

Rosekit avoided her sister's eyes.

"It wasn't great that she got us caught earlier... I guess," she trailed off awkwardly.

Echokit's eyes widened in hurt, before narrowing angrily. She arched her back, hissing.

" _I-"_

"Careful," Meadowkit cut across her, taunting, "don't make her too angry... she might turn out like that _murderer!_ " she backed away in mock fear, sniggering.

Fuming, Echokit charged away, oblivious to the snorts of laughter behind her.

Her heart was thudding painfully in her ears, her face searing beneath her pelt, her breathing short and raspy.

She felt numb - unaware of her surroundings. The only thing she could hear was her harsh breathing and her blood roaring.

Echokit pushed through some reeds, knocking roughly into a smiling Cedarkit. She didn't hear him cry out in shock. She didn't hear Goldenkit yell after her. She didn't hear anything.

 _How dare she._

 _They were sisters. They were supposed to protect each other._

Echokit halted by the shore. She hunched over, overwhelmed by hatred, desolation, _betrayal._

 _Crack!_

Echokit froze at the a sudden sound beneath her tensed paw. She looked down.

Staring back at her was the distorted image of her reflection in the ice.

Only, that wasn't her face, was it?

The face looking up at her was contorted into a feral snarl. Its eyes gleamed with a cold light, it's mouth drawn back revealing pointed, deadly teeth. It was an image of pure rage. The fractured reflection wavered.

 _Is this what they see?_

The thought drifted dully through her mind.

 _Is this what they think I will become?_

Her anger trickled slowly out into the cold ground below, leaving her feeling drained, and light-headed.

* * *

After a short while, Echokit heard a rustling behind her.

"Oh Echokit! You're here!" came the breathless cry. The silver kit turned around.

"Rosekit?" Echokit eyed her sister warily.

"...I-I-" The words caught in Rosekit's throat. "I'm so sorry, Echokit. I know it wasn't your fault you couldn't get a grip on the ice - I should have stood up for you. I don't know what I was thinking! StarClan, I must be the worst sister in all the Clans..."

Rosekit stopped, sniffed and looked hopelessly at her smaller littermate.

In a very small voice she meowed again,

"Can you forgive me? It's okay if you don't... I'd understand if you hate me..."

Echokit smiled, her anger almost forgotten.

"Of course I forgive you Rosekit! You're my sister - I could never hate you," Echokit replied with a purr. Rosekit drooped, visibly relieved.

"Thank you! I'd never felt so bad in my life! I swear, I'll never let them be mean to you again! Oh- what's that?" Rosekit was looking curiously at the fissures Echokit's claws had made in the ice.

"It's nothing really - I was just a little upset earlier," Echokit admitted, staring at the cracks in the reflective surface.

"Oh well... Come on, are you hungry? There's this really juicy looking salmon on the fresh-kill pile, I think Oakpaw caught it downstream this morning, do you want to share it? Salmon's your favourite right?" Echokit nodded as they made their way to the centre of camp, smiling to herself at Rosekit's incessant talking. "Yeah, it's one of my favourites, but I think carp's _amazing_! What do you think of carp? I think it's the _best_..."

* * *

 **A.N. Hello! I'm back with another sporadic update! *throws confetti***

 **Okie dokie, sorry about the shortness of this chapter, but there are larger ones in the works (I can confirm that Chapter Five is going to be really rather long…)!**

 **Also, a MASSIVE thank you to all you lovely people who followed/reviewed my last chapter, even after my lengthy** **hiatus! I'd love to hear your thoughts on the story so far, so please leave a review!**

 **Hopefully I should be able to update relatively soon, but with a few exams around the corner, I can't promise anything**

 **Until next time...**

 **\- An anonymous bookaholic**


	5. Chapter Four and Alliances

**I do no own Warriors...**

* * *

 **Chapter Four**

Leaf-bare's hold over the Clans' territories had weakened only slightly by the time of Meadowkit, Stormkit and Amberkit's apprentice ceremony.

The river had thawed, and now chattered and bubbled merrily as it made its way around the island that was RiverClan's camp. Nevertheless, every morning the cats still woke to a light dusting of frost over their dens.

Cedarkit had been acting unusually withdrawn around Echokit since her confrontation with the others nearly a moon ago, and the she-kit was at a loss as to why. Goldenkit had been strangely hostile towards her too, as well as extremely protective of his brother.

However, she had faced relatively little trouble from the other kits since the mossball incident - some of them almost bordering on civil, but usually just ignoring her. Only Meadowkit seemed to retain her bitter intentions, sneering every time Echokit messed something up, and making barbed comments whenever she had the chance. Needless to say, Echokit was pleased she would not have to sleep in the same den as Meadowkit anymore, even if it was just for a couple of moons.

Echokit liked to think that even Blossombreeze was beginning to warm up to her, or at least thaw out slightly, as her passing detrimental remarks were becoming more and more infrequent. She had even thanked Echokit, albeit grudgingly, when the kit had brought the queen her favourite type of fish from the fresh-kill pile - pike. Rosekit and Echokit had celebrated this achievement, happy that their mother might be beginning to see through the shadows of her past cast by her late brother.

"It'll be _so_ great to finally be out of this old dump," Amberkit boasted to Rosekit and Echokit on the morning of the ceremony. The ginger and white kit arched her back luxuriously, stretching with a wide yawn. "Don't worry, I'll come back and tell you what it's like being an apprentice!" she purred haughtily.

"Amberkit! Come over here now - you must get your pelt clean before the ceremony!" Shimmerpelt ordered from across the nursery. The near-apprentice rolled her eyes.

"Coming Mama!" she yowled, before strutting away from the younger kits. Stormkit was already with his mother, grumbling as she smoothed down his tufty, light brown fur.

Meadowkit sauntered up, her tortoiseshell pelt slicked down. Despite being half a moon younger than Stormpaw and Amberpaw, Meadowpaw's mother Dawnfeather had requested for her daughter's ceremony to be moved forwards by a quarter moon, so it could coincide with the two older kits' ceremony. This was something Meadowkit was exceptionally smug about, and had wasted no time in taunting Echokit about it. The evening before, Echokit had heard her loudly explaining to Foxkit why she thought Echokit would be held back from becoming an apprentice at least a moon due to her small size.

"Hello Rosekit!" she simpered. "I feel so sorry for you - stuck in here for two moons with her!" Echokit growled quietly. "At least you'll have Foxkit - he's great! And I suppose you'll be with Pinekit, Goldenkit and Cedarkit too. I just hope you don't get too lonely, with no decent she-kits your age to talk to."

"We'll make sure to enjoy the peace and quiet while we can, thanks," Rosekit retorted. Meadowkit stiffened. Her eyes flashed angrily, and a frosty silence stretched between them.

"Watch out, Rosekit. Better make sure you hang out with the right crowd - otherwise you might get into trouble some day," Meadowkit warned menacingly, surveying the slightly smaller kit before slinking away.

"Well, that was friendly," Echokit meowed, and the tension dissipated. Rosekit snorted.

"Come on, let's go outside. I think the ceremony's going to start soon," the golden kit meowed. "We'll have to see if we can find a good place to watch the ceremony - you can never see what's going on from the nursery with all those warriors in the way, and they never let us come any further forward!"

The pair crept out into the clearing, avoiding their mother's keen gaze as they snuck out of their den.

Outside they were greeted with a chilling gust of wind. It was late morning, and the sky was gloomy and overcast - the shapeless clouds above them forming a drab, grey blanket. A drizzle had begun to fall on the island earlier that morning.

"Where do you think we should hide?" Echokit whispered, eyeing the passing warriors nervously. None of them seemed to be at all put off by the icy shower.

"Hmm... Maybe in those reeds over there? No, that's too obvious... What about-"

"Hello kits," rumbled a friendly voice from behind them. They spun round, looks of innocence plastered to their faces, but quickly relaxed.

"Papa!"

"You scared us!" Rosekit scolded. Sunfur purred, chuckling.

"Did I now? I didn't think you kits got scared anymore!"

"Well- no, I just-" Rosekit spluttered indignantly, whilst Echokit exclaimed hotly, "You didn't scare me!" Their father looked down at them lovingly.

"I'm sure I didn't," he meowed. "But what were you doing outside?"

"Nothing!" the kits replied just a little too quickly. Sunfur looked sceptical.

"Mmhm... So you definitely weren't looking for a place to watch the ceremony from?"

Rosekit gaped.

"How did you know-" Echokit nudged her furiously. "I mean, no, what are you talking about?" Sunfur's eyes sparkled mischievously.

"Funnily enough, Cedarkit and Goldenkit just asked me the same question. You see that old willow tree over there, behind the warriors' den?" The kits followed his gaze and nodded. "When I was young, I discovered that from up in that tree, you could see the whole camp! There's a thick branch about half way up that you can sit on - though it may be a bit of a squeeze with all four of you up there, so be careful." With a small nod and a farewell, their father was gone.

"Let's go!" Echokit cried, making her way towards the ancient, knotted tree. Rosekit followed, offering a nervous smile to Whitehawk, who was sitting nearby, before scampering away. He and his sister Lilacpaw - now Lilacbreeze, had become warriors only a few days ago, leaving only Duckpaw and Oakpaw in the apprentice den (Skypaw, being the medicine cat apprentice, slept in the medicine cat's den).

They arrived at the base of the tree just as Vinestar leapt up into the bow of the gnarled willow above her den to make her announcement.

"Let all cats old enough to swim gather to hear my words!" Vinestar called, her powerful voice echoing around the overcast island. At her meow, the cats not yet outside padded out of their dens and collected around their leader.

"Hurry up!" Rosekit hissed, as she began to make her ascent of the slimy tree. Echokit followed quickly, digging her claws into the deep ridges in the bark as she pulled herself up.

After what seemed like an age of climbing, they reached a level branch with two of their nursery-mates sitting on top of it, hunched over in the frigid rain. Echokit slumped down onto it, her muscles burning.

"Can you move up a bit?" Echokit asked in a hushed meow. Cedarkit, who was nearest the end, tensed, but complied. "Thanks." He didn't acknowledge her. Rosekit turned to her sister.

"Who do you think's-"

" _Quiet_!" Goldenkit cut her off, his whiskers twitching in annoyance.

"Sorry!" Rosekit ducked her head.

Echokit peered through the slender branches swaying in the wind as the ceremony began. Below, she could see Stormkit, Amberkit and Meadowkit standing in the crowd, their chests puffed out with pride. Vinestar called the three forward, and they padded nervously towards her.

"Amberkit, you have reached the age of six moons, and it is time for you to be apprenticed. From this day on, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Amberpaw. I ask StarClan to watch over you and guide you until you find in your paws the strength and courage of a warrior.

"Firestorm, please come forward." The golden tabby weaved his way through the watching cats.

"Firestorm, you are ready to take on an apprentice. You have shown yourself to be fierce and brave in battle, and an excellent warrior. You will be the mentor of Amberpaw, and I expect you to pass on all you know to her."

The apprentice and mentor quickly touched noses, Firestorm offering Amberpaw a warm smile, which she politely returned.

"So she's Firestorm's first apprentice," Rosekit mused quietly.

"I bet Otterstripe will get an apprentice too - she's never had one before, and she's Firestorm's littermate," Echokit replied. Goldenkit glowered at them again, and they quickly shut up.

Stormkit was called forwards, and assigned Otterstripe as a mentor.

"Told you!" Echokit muttered in Rosekit's ear.

Lastly, Meadowkit was beckoned, and given Willowstreak as a mentor.

The tawny she-cat walked forwards and greeted her new apprentice pleasantly.

"So, Meadowpaw's Willowstreak's second apprentice, I think," Echokit murmured.

"Yeah, wasn't her first Appledawn?" Rosekit replied.

"That's what I thought-"

"Will you two please be quiet?!" Cedarkit snapped. The sisters looked over in shock; Cedarkit never snapped.

The young tom's eyes were blazing with frustration. He was teetering forwards on the bough - trying in vain to see the clearing below, which was obscured by the willow's long, slender branches flying in the wind.

"It's bad enough with these branches in the way, but with you talking nonstop, I can hear so much I might as well not be here!" Cedarkit growled, swaying slightly in the wind. "So please, in StarClan's name, will you-"

"Shut up! Now I can't hear, minnow-brain!" Goldenkit slapped his tail across his brother's face.

Cedarkit spluttered in shock, his eyes wide as he suddenly lost his grip on the sodden branch. He scrambled backwards, and, to the kits horror, plunged off the branch - straight into the river below.

" _CEDARKIT_!" Goldenkit bellowed as his brother plummeted down into the water. His cry was drowned out by the Clan as the cheered the names of the new apprentices. The panicked kit spun round, his eyes fearful. "Do something!" Goldenkit begged the older kits. Rosekit was frozen in shock.

Below them, Cedarkit had resurfaced, coughing in the muddy water, as he was slowly washed further away from the island. He was splashing about, trying to paddle back, with little success.

 _They haven't even started swimming lessons yet!_ Echokit thought wildly.

"Rosekit?" Her sister didn't register - her green eyes were blank with horror.

"What do we do?!" Goldenkit cried. His brother's head disappeared below the surface again, only to reappear slightly further away. He was nearing the rapids - just about to pass the leafless branches of the tree, trailing in the water-

 _The branches!_

" _CEDARKIT!_ _Hold onto the branches - I'm coming to get you!_ "

The drenched kit apparently heard her cry, because he suddenly twisted, and just managed to grab onto the slimy tendrils hanging in the water.

Echokit slithered down the slippery trunk, rounded the tree and dived into the freezing river.

She gasped as the numbing water invaded her pelt. The ground beneath her paws sloped away, and she had to focus on keeping her nose above the surface. A wave sloshed over her head, and for a second she was fully submerged in the freezing grey water. Echokit quickly broke the surface, and paddled furiously towards her terrified nursery-mate.

Echokit had only had a couple of swimming lessons, courtesy of the apprentices (when they had had a morning free from duties), but that had been in early leaf-fall, when the river was still warm from the end of greenleaf.

As the silver kit reached Cedarkit's bobbing head, she noticed with a jolt, that he was slowly losing his grip on the branch. His eyes were squeezed tightly shut, and his jaw was clamped strongly around the slick wood, but with every little wave, he was dragged a little further down it.

"Cedarkit?" she spluttered, spitting river water out of her mouth. The tom cracked open a fearful eye. "Don't worry, you're gonna be okay. We just need to swim back to the island - it's not very far - see!" Echokit motioned towards the muddy bank.

Taking a deep breath, the she-kit lunged at the smaller cat in the water, clenching her jaw around Cedarkit's scruff.

"Don't squirm," she instructed, though his fur muffled her meow. She felt him tense, and she began to turn around in the water.

Almost immediately, she dipped beneath the surface. The freezing water closed over her ears, and the sounds of the sloshing river faded into a dull trickle. Cedarkit struggled meekly in her grip, clearly troubled by being suddenly enveloped by the river. Her determination quickly began to wane.

Panic stole over Echokit as her lungs began to ache. She kicked harder with her hind legs, but made little headway. The frigid current buffeted her fur as her actions slowed, her legs beginning to numb. Opening her eyes, all she could see was the murky water. Her chest began to burn and she could feel her heart thudding in her head.

 _Thud thud._

Echokit was struck with the realization that this had been a terrible idea.

 _Thud thud._

Cedarkit began to thrash in her grip.

 _Thud thud._

If she didn't get out soon, they were both going to drown.

 _Thud thud._

She suddenly felt wonderfully tired. Her back legs kicked feebly in the water. All she had to do was breath in, and the pain in her chest would go...

 _Thud._

Something nudged her forwards in the water. A gentle presence, pushing her on.

 _Thud._

 _Is this StarClan?_ Echokit thought feebly. She could see no one in the gloom.

 _Thud._

Her chest felt ready to explode. Cedarkit was stilling in her grip.

 _Thud._

Something was pushing her forwards again, and her paws kicked up stones in the riverbed. The riverbed. _She had reached the bottom._

 _THUD._

She felt an explosion of adrenaline, and with renewed effort, she pushed one paw in front of the other. And then again.

 _THUD THUD._

Dragging herself through the water, she trekked upwards.

 _THUD THUD THUD._

She broke the surface.

Echokit collapsed on the bank, her chest heaving. Cedarkit suddenly spluttered next to her, coughing up water.

" _Echokit!"_ A loud voice called.

"She just dived straight in - right here! E-Echokit?! Oh thank StarClan - you're alive!" Rosekit ran towards her, her voice full of relief. Sunfur rushed after her, closely followed by Pearlshine.

"That was awfully minnow-brained! Why didn't you fetch a warrior?!" A cat cried out from the blurred crowd surrounding them. Somewhat dazed, Echokit found herself agreeing the voice. _Why hadn't she fetched a warrior?_

"If she had, Cedarkit may have been washed downstream. Echokit saved his life!" Another voice called out in reply, but Echokit couldn't identify it.

"Cedarkit! You're okay!" Pearlshine cried. Goldenkit skidded down next to them to check on his brother. Pearlshine was covering him in licks.

"Thank you," he meowed shakily, nodding gratefully at Echokit. She grinned blearily back at him.

"Let me though! Get out of my way!" Echokit heard Olivenose hiss loudly. Suddenly, her silvery brown muzzle came into her line of vision. A pair of calculating amber eyes scanned her pelt before turning to Cedarkit. "In my den. Now." She ordered, before yowling, "Skypaw, we need two new nests - with extra feathers! And get some thyme ready too!"

* * *

Rosekit and Sunfur accompanied her across the clearing. The Clan clamoured around them like a flock of starlings, trying to find out what had happened. Echokit spotted Stormpaw and the other new apprentices standing sulkily in the entrance of their new den, throwing spiteful glances in her direction.

"They looked pleased," Echokit muttered to her sister, as she padded shakily along. Rosekit followed her gaze.

"Don't worry about them - they're just jealous they're not the most important cats on the island," Rosekit reassured her, before adding under her breath, "Minnow-brains!"

By the time they reached Olivenose's den, Echokit was shivering violently. Her pelt was still dripping with river water. Skypaw gave her a look of exasperation.

"Try to get a little drier before you get in the nest, otherwise you'll stay wet all day. RiverClan hasn't had a single case of greencough this leaf-bare, and I'd like it to stay that way.

"Lie down," Sunfur murmured, as he began to clean Echokit's pelt. The kit held her breath, unsure if she would be scolded for not fetching a warrior. "I want you to know, that despite how rashly you acted today, I'm proud of you for what you did. You saved a life." He purred, and smiled down at her. "But it's an important lesson to learn that sometimes, you can't save everyone. Jumping into the river with little to no swimming practice was reckless. You could easily have died. And I-I..." He paused. "All I'm trying to say is... Try to stay safe." Then he smiled. "Anyway, I'm sure you will have lots of opportunities to be reckless when you're an apprentice. Not long now, is it?"

"It'll be longer if she doesn't get dry and catches greencough." Olivenose grumbled as she set a few small green leaves down. "Chew on these: they'll calm you down." Echokit did as she was told. The leaves had a sharp, fresh flavour, despite looking old and withered. "Honestly, kits jumping into the river in leaf-bare. How irresponsible can they get?" Olivenose muttered, then yowled, "Skypaw! I thought I had an apprentice to give out my herbs, but clearly I was wrong!" The old medicine cat shook her head before ambling off to treat Cedarkit. "You two will be sleeping here tonight - I want to keep an eye on you. In fact, you should be getting some rest now. StarClan knows you both need it."

Echokit was relieved, although Rosekit was a bit annoyed that she wasn't allowed to stay in the medicine cat den overnight. She said goodbye reluctantly and left an exhausted Echokit to go to sleep. As she was drifting off, she heard a small meow.

"Echokit?" Cedarkit called.

"Mmhm?"

"Thank you."

"No prbl'm," Echokit mumbled softly.

* * *

 **A.N. Hello! I've risen again to release... _Chapter Four_ *dramatic gasps* What were your thoughts?**

 **Okay, I have had a request for the Alliances, so they are as follows (as of the end of Chapter Four)...**

 **RiverClan:**

 _ **Leader:**_ **Vinestar - Lithe, russet she-cat, with green eyes. Has four lives left.**

 ** _Deputy:_ Sunfur - Broad-shouldered, russet tom with large white paws, and golden eyes.**

 ** _Medicine Cat:_ Olivenose - Old, wiry brown she-cat, with amber eyes.**

 _ **Medicine Cat**_ ** _Apprentice_ : Skypaw **

_**Warriors:**_

 **Sootnose - Large black tom, with light blue eyes.**

 **Firestorm - Magnificent golden tabby tom, with green eyes. _[Apprentice, Amberpaw]_**

 **Otterstripe - Glossy golden tabby she-cat, with blue eyes.**

 **Willowstreak - Tawny tabby she-cat, with amber eyes.** ** _[Apprentice, Meadowpaw]_**

 **Fernheart - Energetic grey she-cat, with hazel eyes.**

 **Orangetail - White and orange tabby she-cat, with amber eyes.** ** _[Apprentice, Duckpaw]_**

 **Dawnfeather - Longhaired tortoiseshell she-cat, with amber eyes.**

 **Shadowpelt - Wiry black tom, with amber eyes.**

 **Shimmerpelt - Pretty, longhaired silver she-cat with crystal blue eyes.**

 **Minnowtail - Young grey tabby tom, with blue eyes.**

 **Featherstream - Longhaired silver she-cat, with blue eyes.**

 **Reedclaw - Powerful ginger tom, with handsome brown markings on his face, and amber eyes.** ** _[Apprentice, Oakpaw]_**

 **Smokeypelt - Battle-scarred dark grey tom, with amber eyes.**

 **Honeycloud - Light brown she-cat, with green eyes.**

 **Appledawn - Pretty, golden she-cat, with green eyes.**

 **Ottersong - Young, ginger and white she-cat, with dark blue eyes.**

 **Raincloud - Young, grey she-cat, with a lighter grey muzzle, and blue eyes.**

 **Whitehawk - Sturdy, white and grey tom with light blue eyes.**

 **Lilacbreeze - Swift grey she-cat, with unusual pale blue/lilac eyes.**

 _ **Apprentices:**_

 **Skypaw - Friendly grey tom, with yellow eyes.**

 **Duckpaw - Brown tabby she-cat, with amber eyes.**

 **Oakpaw - Thick-furred russet tom, with light blue eyes.**

 **Amberpaw - Pretty white and ginger she-cat, with amber eyes.**

 **Stormpaw - Thick-furred, light brown tabby tom, with handsome brown markings on his face, and dark amber eyes.**

 **Meadowpaw - Small tortoiseshell she-cat, with a white chest and paws, and golden eyes.**

 _ **Queens:**_

 **Blossombreeze - Pretty, pale golden she-cat, with green eyes. ( _Mate_ : Sunfur, _Kits_ : Foxkit - Handsome russet tom with a white chest and tail tip, with golden eyes; Pinekit - Thick-furred russet tom, with white paws, and darker stripes on his back, with pale amber eyes; Rosekit - Pretty, pale golden she-cat, with a tinged pink chest and tail tip, with green eyes; Echokit - Unusual silver and black spotted tabby she-cat, with blue eyes.)**

 **Pearlshine - Young, white and ginger longhaired she-cat, with amber eyes. ( _Mate:_ Firestorm, _Kits:_ Cedarkit - Glossy, golden brown tabby tom, with green eyes; Goldenkit - Handsome white and golden tom, with amber eyes; Foamkit - stillborn, tiny white she-cat.) **

_**Elders:**_

 **Sweetfur - Pale tabby she-cat, with golden eyes and long whiskers.**

 **Berrycloud - Compact, black and white she-cat, with hazel eyes.**

 **Speckledear - Grey tom with darker flecks, with half a tail, and yellow eyes.**

 **ThunderClan:**

 _ **Leader:**_ **Dawn** **star - Pretty, golden tabby she-cat, with green eyes. Has eight lives left.**

 ** _Deputy:_ Shrewclaw - Thick-furred light brown tom, with a white chest and paws, with dark amber eyes.**

 ** _Medicine Cat:_ Ravenheart - Lithe, black and white patchy tom, with green eyes. **

_**Medicine Cat**_ ** _Apprentice_ : Dapplepaw - Tortoiseshell she-cat, with green eyes. **

**ShadowClan:**

 _ **Leader:**_ **Berry** **star - Dark brown tabby tom, with huge paws and amber eyes. Has two lives left.**

 ** _Deputy:_ Longdusk - Compact, tortoiseshell she-cat, with long front claws and green eyes.**

 ** _Medicine Cat:_ Mallowflight - Longhaired, cream she-cat, with pale green eyes. **

**WindClan:**

 _ **Leader:**_ **Swallowstar** **\- Large grey/blue tom, with a white chest and paws, with amber eyes. Has six lives left.**

 ** _Deputy:_ Stonespirit - Big, slate grey tom, with dark amber eyes. **

**_Medicine Cat:_ Mistywing - Small golden tabby she-cat, with blue eyes.**

 _ **Medicine Cat**_ ** _Apprentice_ : Juniperpaw - Wiry brown tabby tom, with amber eyes.**

 **...**

 **Whew... That's a lot of cats! The alliances are pretty well set in stone now, so I will no longer be accepting OCs - but thanks to those who submitted theirs! I can't guarantee a large part in the plot, but they will definitely be popping up here and there!**

 **I would like to give a HUGE thank you to those who've left such lovely reviews :) They really make my day!**

 **But anyway, hopefully I will be able to upload the next chapter _relatively_ soon... *nervous laughter* Until next time!**

 **\- An anyonymous bookaholic**


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